diff --git a/xCAT-test/unit/xcatd_monitor_respawn.t b/xCAT-test/unit/xcatd_monitor_respawn.t
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..52535be81
--- /dev/null
+++ b/xCAT-test/unit/xcatd_monitor_respawn.t
@@ -0,0 +1,52 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env perl
+use strict;
+use warnings;
+use Test::More;
+
+# Regression: xcatd's install monitor (the child that listens on xcatiport / 3002 and receives node
+# install-status updates and the "next" boot-flip request) was forked exactly ONCE at daemon startup.
+# When it died the SIGCHLD reaper only cleared $pid_MON ($CHILDPID == $pid_MON -> $pid_MON = 0) and
+# nothing re-forked it. So a single death of that child -- a stray signal, or a lost socket-takeover
+# during an xcatd restart -- left xcatiport permanently dead while the main daemon kept running, and
+# installing nodes could no longer report "booted" or request the boot flip until the WHOLE daemon was
+# restarted (which is disruptive to concurrent operations). xcatd must instead respawn the monitor in
+# its main service loop so it self-heals without a full restart.
+
+use File::Spec;
+use FindBin;
+my $repo_root = File::Spec->rel2abs( File::Spec->catdir( $FindBin::Bin, '..', '..' ) );
+
+sub slurp {
+    my ($rel) = @_;
+    my $path = File::Spec->catfile( $repo_root, split m{/}, $rel );
+    local $/;
+    open my $fh, '<', $path or return undef;
+    <$fh>;
+}
+
+my $x = slurp('xCAT-server/sbin/xcatd');
+plan skip_all => 'sbin/xcatd not found' unless defined $x;
+
+like($x, qr/if\s*\(\s*!\$pid_MON\s*&&\s*!\$quit\s*&&\s*\$sport\s*\)/,
+    'main loop re-forks the install monitor when it has died (!$pid_MON && !$quit && $sport)');
+
+# The respawn must actually (re)enter the install-monitor service in the forked child.
+like($x, qr/!\$pid_MON.*?do_installm_service;.*?xexit\(0\)/s,
+    'the respawn child runs do_installm_service (re-serves xcatiport) and exits');
+
+# The respawn must be rate limited. do_installm_service dies when it cannot bind xcatiport
+# after its own retries -- e.g. while another instance still holds the socket. The child then
+# exits, the SIGCHLD reaper clears $pid_MON, and an unguarded main loop re-forks immediately,
+# producing a fork storm for as long as the port stays held and colliding with that function's
+# own USR2 socket-takeover handshake. Respawns must therefore be spaced, and must give up
+# (loudly) rather than retry forever.
+like($x, qr/\$mon_respawn_(?:last|attempts)/,
+    'the respawn is rate limited by recorded state (last attempt time / attempt count)');
+like($x, qr/XCATD_MON_RESPAWN_INTERVAL|mon_respawn_interval/,
+    'a minimum interval separates consecutive respawn attempts');
+like($x, qr/XCATD_MON_RESPAWN_MAX|mon_respawn_max/,
+    'the number of consecutive respawn attempts is capped');
+like($x, qr/giving up|gave up/i,
+    'exhausting the cap is reported rather than retried silently forever');
+
+done_testing();